What Makes A Monster?
by Shadow Wolf 359
Summary: After plunging into the Lifestream during the escape from the Crater, Vincent discovers that he doesn't fully change back from his transformations. Will he find a cure? R&R!
1. Plunge into the Lifestream

What Makes a Monster?

Chapter one: Plunge Into The Lifestream

Disclaimer: (Sings) I was going to the park one day, in the merry merry month of May! I was taken by surprise, Final Fantasy caught my eyes, but I still don't own it to this daaayyyy!

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_We've finally done it..._

Crimson eyes gazed down into the Northern Crater where they'd just finished off Sephiroth. All of them were beaten and exhausted - but perhaps none more than Vincent Valentine.

For Vincent had a secret that he kept hidden inside about Sephiroth, one he decided he would never admit to his comrades. It was a secret he would carry with him to the grave.

Sephiroth was Vincent's son.

Vincent closed his eyes slowly, a great pain clutching at his chest and throat. _Killing Sephiroth was necessary... He was going to destroy the Planet... But is this act just another sin to the list... or is it a part of my redemption?_ He slowly opened his blood-filled eyes, raising them to the sky up above. _Lucrecia... How would you judge me? Would you say I had freed Sephiroth from his insanity.. Given him peace at last... Or does the fact that I helped kill my one and only child... our child... just prove how monstrous I really am?_

"Vincent?" A voice stirred him out of his thoughts. He looked over at the leader of their little group... The spiky-haired youth looked ready to topple over against the slightest breeze. "Are you coming...?"

Vincent finally realized that the entire group had begun making their way out of the crater, and they were all looking back, waiting for him. He gave himself a mental shake and followed after them. He was not usually so unobservant of his surroundings.

A massive earthquake knocked them all to their knees, the rock cracking and falling all around them. As soon as it passed, it was followed by the sound of rushing water. A glance down toward the crater confirmed that the Lifestream was bubbling up toward them, rapidly rising. Several more tremors began to shake the entire crater as the Avalanche members staggered to their feet and took off running as fast as they could manage. Fortunately, the earthquake had caused the Highwind to come crashing down to their level, and they wasted no time boarding the air ship while the voluptuous painting of Lady Luck smiled upon them.

"Hang on to your britches and don't piss in 'em!" Cid hollered as he started up the Highwind and sent it rocketing up out of the Northern Crater, just as the Lifestream rushed up behind them. With no seats save for those at the control panels, everyone grabbed what they could to keep from plummeting. At the sound of claws screaming against metal, Vincent turned to see Nanaki losing his grip on the floor, sliding back, his fierce eyes wide with panic.

Vincent quickly shifted to wrap one leg around the rail he was holding on to, removing his cloak and tying one end securely around the rail. Using it as a rope, he swung down to catch Nanaki around the middle just as the feline lost his grip, hefting him up to grab onto the cloak. Nanaki swiftly took advantage of this, sinking his claws into the fabric for a better hold, crawling up to clamp onto the rail with his jaws, making sure to keep the firey tip of his tail away from Vincent's face.

An ominous sound of cloth tearing snapped Vincent's attention upward just as his golden claws tore through the last bits of the old, tattered cloak. Eyes slightly wide with surprise, he thought he heard someone scream as he fell, just before his back crashed into the metal frame of one of the windows, the rest of his form impacting the glass and causing a great spiderweb of cracks to spread out from his body.

He slowly opened his eyes again, his body screaming with pain, chest constricted with the wind knocked out of him as he gazed blearily up at the others. Tifa was screaming his name, and Cloud shouted down at him not to move.

_Crack..._

He slowly turned his head and stared at the spreading cracks on the glass beneath him, slowly starting to breathe again.

_Craa-aa-aack..._

Vincent could feel the glass giving way beneath him, slowly lifting his gaze to stare up at his comrades. All of them were staring down at him with terror... And the only word that came to his mind was _...Why?_

_Crrrr..._

He could feel his heart pounding, his eyes suddenly snapping to Cid, who was attempting to straighten out the aircraft. As the ship began to straighten, he began to slide...

_CrrrrrRUNCH!_

As the glass gave way beneath him he grabbed for the frame of the window, his fingers slipping away with the horrid _screech_ of claws ripping into metal. He heard Tifa scream his name one last time as he plummeted down... Tumbling through the sky, down toward the rising green flood of Lifestream, he never made a sound as he plunged into the viscous liquid and sank into it. And as his world began to go black, he closed his eyes, his last thought a silent plea: _...Lucrecia... Please... Forgive me...

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A/N - It's about time I finally started a Final Fantasy VII fanfic. So, what do you think? Good, bad, no friggin' clue? Please REVIEW, the life of this fic depends on your feedback!


	2. All Washed Up

What Makes A Monster?

Chapter Two: All Washed Up

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A/N - Thanks for the feedback, everyone. I do appreciate the criticism and I'll do what I can to keep you from being disappointed... Unfortunately, that doesn't look like it's going to happen.

A Vincent Fan - Thanks, and I know what you mean by the pairing thing... I'm thinking of not having one. It was sort of a brief idea, thinking that maybe I should have this fic also dedicated to a pairing, since my other two fics aren't. But, you're right.

Duo Akira - Sorry it was so short, I've gotten really bad with leaving cliffhangers lately. .O; I hate cliffhangers when I read stories but I do it in my own... I'm a hypocrite. XD And thanks for the pairing suggestion, but the way things are looking, I regretfully don't think I'll be using it.

Kd Zeal - I agree, I don't think a pairing is exactly necessary for the fic... It was more of a passing thought. And as for the author's note, I was hoping it would reel more people in to anticipate how things would unravel... I was concerned that they would not be interested if I didn't give a more detailed summary of what would happen. But I've removed it since the summary explains it well enough.

Nameless - Thanks for the pairing suggestion, I like Cid with Vincent too, but Kd Zeal and A Vincent Fan have a point in that it's not necessary for this particular fic and I do understand how it goes somewhat against Vincent's character to have someone.

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All around him, there was darkness... Darkness occasionally dappled with crimson memories, bloody visions of days long since passed...

_"I'm sorry, Vincent..."_

That voice... That sweet voice, like bells chiming in his head...

_"Understand this... I am in love with Hojo. Not you."_

Only that voice could cause him such agony...

_"I could never love a monster..."_

Only that voice could break his heart.

**_And since when have you had a heart, Vincent?_** A dark, sinister voice chuckled in his mind. **_Don't kid yourself... What you felt for that woman was simply lust and obsession. Monsters like you and I are unable to love. It's a foreign, alien emotion, a chemical reaction in the brains of human beings that we could never experience._**

_You say that as if I were never human,_ Vincent thought wryly.

**_You say that as if you think you were._** Chaos retorted. **_You may have physically been a human, but your heart has long since been turned to a black, withered thing in your chest. You are a killer, Vincent, a cold-blooded murderer. You always have been. You always will be._**

Vincent turned his consciousness away from the demon, only to find himself being plunged into another memory.

The light above his head was blinding... Everything in his body screamed with pain, especially around his chest... He felt a heaviness in his chest, and groaned as another breath of air was forced into his lungs from the mask over his mouth. Beyond the brightness of the light, he could see the darkened outline of Professor Hojo, the silver surgical tools in his bloody hands glinting in the light.

He felt so light, so detatched from his body... The pain seemed muted, as if his brain knew, for the sake of his sanity, to reject the complaints of the screaming nerve endings being torn and severed, but was unable to do so completely. He slowly turned his head away from the blinding light, focusing on another form lying on an adjacent table... Lucrecia... Quietly crying as she stared at him in horror, her hands over her mouth, her body swollen with pregnancy.

_You were my first love_

_The earth moving under me_

_Bedroom scent, beauty ardent_

_Distant shiver, heaven sent_

Their eyes met, and her eyes grew wider as she saw just how aware he was of what was happening to him. She whispered his name, her face ashen, her shaking fingertips raised to her mouth.

_I'm the snow on your lips_

_The freezing taste, the silvery sip_

_I'm the breath on your hair_

_The endless nightmare, devil's lair_

There were wires and tubes connected all over her naked body, mostly over the swollen mound of her stomach. Tears continued to fall from her emerald eyes as she closed them and turned her face away, her untidy auburn hair unbound and unkempt. She was seven months pregnant... Just two months before the innocent babe would fall completely into Hojo's hands.

_Only so many times_

_I can say I long for you_

_The lily among the thorns_

_The prey among the wolves_

A loud whirring noise turned Vincent's attention back to Hojo... He knew he shouldn't look, he wouldn't want to see what he planned to do next... But it was like witnessing a car accident. You hear what has happened, and you turn to see, all the while knowing that what you saw would not be pleasant...

_Someday I will feed a snake_

_Drink her venom, stay awake_

_With time all pain will fade_

_Through your memory I will wade_

He had a bone saw in his bloody hands, the little circular blade whirling away as it was lowered into his chest cavity. His ice blue eyes widened, until pain exploded through his body. A scream tore from his throat, a high-pitched shriek of agony as his mind crumbled and his sanity fled. Darkness consumed him for a short time, and when his vision cleared again, he was in a different memory. Floating in one of the mako-filled tubes, his long raven hair floating around his scarred body, he witnessed Sephiroth's birth... and as the blood gushed from Lucrecia's birth canal, dripping off of the surgical table, he witnessed the only love of his life die, her hands reaching out, longing to hold her baby as her life fled from her body, only to be shunned as Hojo coldly turned away.

_Barely cold in her grave_

_Barely warm in my bed_

_Settling for a draw tonight_

_Puppet girl, your strings are mine_

Hojo never batted an eyelash at her death... the death of the woman that looked up to him and loved him... He only had eyes for the wailing babe in his arms, with his little silver thatch of hair and bright emerald green cat eyes. He never heard the harrowing scream of loss and despair that tore from Vincent's throat, drowned in the mako he was imprisoned in.

_This one is for you, for you_

_Only for you_

_Just give in to it, never think again_

_I feel for you_

All Hojo could see was the beginning of his most monstrous experimentations yet on the poor innocent babe, who already showed an intelligence and awareness of everything around him. The poor child that he glimpsed every so often through the first few years of his life, who had looked upon him with curiosity and grimness as he floated endlessly in that tube of mako... Until the day he was sealed in the coffin to live with his nightmares for thirty years, trying to repent...

Because he could not save her.

Because he could not save _them._

Sephiroth, no matter what he had done, was a victim... A victim of Vincent's inability to save Lucrecia and him from Hojo's clutches when he had the chance to do so. The Planet's peril was Vincent's fault because he did not stop the problem when it began. Everyone who had died by Sephiroth's hands was his fault. Everyone who suffered and died by the Weapons being sent out was his fault... Because he did not save Sephiroth and Lucrecia from Hojo's madness.

Would he ever be able to repent enough for these sins...?

Vincent's crimson eyes snapped open against the glowing green of the lifestream at a sudden jolt of pain coursing through his body. The demons within him growled nervously as he looked around, as if expecting there to be something in the lifestream to have caused the unexpected pain. He turned in the thick, viscous liquid, unable to see anything around him, when the jolt of pain hit again - and this time, he wasn't the only one affected. Death Gygas let out a confused, almost comical, **_...Ar?_** noise in his mind before suddenly bellowing with agony.

Vincent's confusion soon faded as the pain returned tenfold, screaming as he felt an intense pressure along his back and shoulders. Writhing in the liquid, tossing and turning in a desperate attempt to somehow escape whatever was causing the pain, his black shirt stretched tight against his extending back, tearing slowly down the middle. The bulging tumor extending from his entire back slowly formed into the back, shoulders, and head of Death Gygas, the demon somehow being forced from Vincent's body, painfully separating from him.

He couldn't stop screaming, it hurt so much... As Death Gygas suddenly became aware of the freedom involved in his parting from Vincent, he started struggling against him, ripping and tearing away from his host like an immensely large baby clawing and kicking its way out of the womb. Finally, the demon's massive feet slipped free, and he barely had time to celebrate before being swept away by the current.

Left feeing exhausted, aching, and bewildered, Vincent stared off after the demon as it cartwheeled down the current... Wondering for a moment why he seemed to be remaining still while the demon was flushed away... But his curiosity took the back seat once again as the pain returned, and this time it was Hellmasker that was chosen to be ejected.

But Hellmasker wasn't so gentle as dear Death Gygas. He had a chainsaw.

Vincent's eyes widened so far that the whites of his eyes could be seen all around his bloody irises, as the scream of the chainsaw sounded behind him.

Hellmasker wasn't the dull-witted imbecile that Death Gygas was... Oh, no. The emotionless demon was quite cunning, and figured out easily that he would probably get out of Vincent faster if he took off a few layers of Vincent's flesh.

The Lifestream was suddenly stained with a burst of blood as the demon began sawing into Vincent's back. The poor ex-Turk was howling with agony, his voice swallowed up by the Planet's luminescent blood, struggling to mentally _push_ Hellmasker out of him, to get him to cease his relentless assault. Kind of like giving birth to a sadistic chainsaw-wielding baby... (Ouch, anyone?)

With one last mental push, Hellmasker was free, and was also swept downstream. Unable to move, Vincent found the current picking up, and suddenly saw the reason for the quickening current... Lifestream was descending on Midgar right along with Meteor.

_...I'm going to die..._ Vincent thought numbly, just before he was swept down and lost all consciousness.


	3. And Then There Were Two

What Makes a Monster

Chapter Three: And Then There Were Two

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Why was everything so cold...?

That was the first thing that struck Vincent as he slowly came to consciousness. He was cold. This was extremely odd, for the ex-Turk did not feel much in the way of cold or warmth. He could not feel the bite of the wind in the snow fields north of Icicle Village, nor could he feel the dry heat of the sun in Costa De Sol.

But now, everything was cold. Bitterly, deathly cold. Distantly he could feel himself shivering, his ripped clothing sopping wet and clinging to his lean form.

_So, this must be death..._ He mused to himself quietly. _I'd always imagined Hell would be hot... A dark inferno of death and suffering..._ A trace of wry amusement graced his next words. _Perhaps Hell froze over once Death finally claimed its favorite toy. Or perhaps I am in Cocytus, the ninth and lowest level of Hell, where Lucifer himself resides... Furthest from the source of all light and warmth. Sinners are frozen in the ice, eyes and mouths frozen shut, only their faces free from the ice. Such a fate is reserved for traitors against God, country, family, and benefactors... I certainly fit into those categories, don't I...? But... If I can feel myself shivering... I must not be frozen..._

Slowly, Vincent opened his eyes... But instead of the Hell he expected to see, he saw the broken, twisted heaps of buildings all around him. Iron beams jutted out from the rubble, the ground charred black. Everything around him was glistening with the fluids of the Lifestream, the green, viscous liquid dripping slowly from the ruins of Midgar.

Experimentally shifting his body, he grimaced at the pain that flared through his back, slowly moving to sit up. His flesh hand twisted around to touch at his back where it was exposed through the torn cloth, fully expecting to feel raw flesh exposed from Hellmasker's chainsaw... He found himself surprised to feel his skin whole and unblemished beneath his fingertips.

_Perhaps the Lifestream healed it... It would not surprise me..._ His hands automatically went to check for each of his guns... Death Penalty strapped securely at his side, Quicksilver still in his boot, ammunition in his pockets. Shakily, Vincent moved to sit up. He was on one of the slanted, collapsed Plates above one of the sectors - which one, he could not tell. Nothing was recognizable. Regaining his mobility with every passing moment, he quietly waited until he was sure he would not slip and fall before descending down the plate.

**_Ugh..._ **Chaos grunted slightly as he roused within Vincent's mind. **_I feel like you were hit by a bus._**

_Funny, I feel the same way,_Vincent muttered inwardly. As he reached a section where the edge of the plate had snapped off and fallen at a sharper angle, he nimbly leapt over the gap... And sharply sucked in his breath as his boots slipped from beneath him and he crashed onto his side, only his claws on the top edge keeping him from sliding further down. He looked down the sharply tilted plane, toward the rubble of the city below.

**_How very graceful, _**Chaos sniggered. **_Where is your usual agility and grace, Killer?_**

_Death Gigas probably took it with him when he escaped, _Vincent muttered to the demon. He was being unusually patient. Understandable, now that his head did not always feel quite so crowded and noisy. _He was more in need of it._

**_Speaking of Death Gigas,_ **Galian spoke up, not as vinidictive or vicious as Chaos - he'd been with Vincent the longest, **_What do you suppose happened to him and Hellmasker?_**

**_I'm guessing either they're dead or they're heading as fast as they can to Costa De Sol for some relaxation and sunbathing,_** Chaos smirked.

**_And bikini-clad women?_** Galian chirped.

_Well... If Hojo could attract his own little harem on the beach, why not them? _Vincent commented absently as he let go of the edge of the plate and began sliding down on his back.

**_Ugh. Eww._** Chaos snorted. It amused Vincent to hear the demon react so, but he agreed.

It was Tifa who had expressed her revulsion about the scene, and at first Vincent had been almost inclined to believe she had hallucinated. He was unsure as to how any woman could be attracted to the ratty-looking, hunchbacked scientist. Then again, Lucrecia had fallen in love with him...

Both demons fell silent as Vincent slid down the plate, letting him have the concentration he needed to make sure he didn't gain too much speed or run into any protruding objects. As he began to near the rubble below, he braced his heels as best he could on the slick surface to begin slowing his descent, arms stretched out to his sides. His heels made a nasty sound along the plate, something akin to the sound of skidding sneakers on the floor of a gym. Yet when he dug his prosthetic fingers into the plate, the screeching took on the attributes of amplified nails on a chalkboard. His ears rang with the awful noise, both demons within giving a low groan. Yet his descent slowed, and just as he reached the ground, he slowed to a stop and was able to drop nimbly down the last few feet.

Straightening up, Vincent surveyed his surroundings. Everything was deathly silent, the city even more dingy and dark without the artificial lighting to provide some sort of illumination. Shivering once more, he turned to begin walking through the rubble to slowly make his way out of the city. There was no point in remaining when nothing could have survived Meteor's descent. The only thing that had really saved Vincent was that he had been dumped _above_ Meteor and had managed to escape the damaging heat, flame, and twisters.

A sudden thought occured to Vincent as he leapt nimbly through the rubble. A vision of a certain spiky-haired blonde boy in a wheelchair, his head wavering, struggling to lift and then falling forward once again, like a living bobblehead doll. Abruptly he stopped from where he was perched on top of a protruding metal beam, crouching down as the wind toyed with his hair. _I've just come into contact with enough Mako to give anyone a fatal amount of Mako poisoning. It even brought Cloud near death. So why am I not feeling any ill effects?_

He cast the question inward, voicing it to both demons inside of him. **_Perhaps it is because of us,_ **Galian commented. Vincent got the mental impression of the behemoth-like demon shrugging.

**_Or maybe it's because you're so inhuman, you aren't affected like humans are, _**Chaos sneered.

_That makes sense, _Vincent relented. He'd long ago accepted he did not share much more than basic physical features with the rest of humankind. _But how is it that Death Gigas and Hellmasker were expelled from my body?_

**_I'd attribute that to the Lifestream, _**Galian murmured thoughtfully.

Chaos's presence suddenly loomed large in Vincent's consciousness, his deep snarling voice taking on a very threatening tone. **_Perhaps that is why you should seek out another pool of Lifestream and bathe in it for a while. So we can be free, and you can be rid of us once and for all._**

Vincent tensed, lips pressed tightly together and eyes narrowed. It was indeed a vastly tempting thought, but he could not release Chaos out into the world. Galian was perhaps the least violent of the four demons. He killed to feed, or he killed in self defense. Killing was a fact of life for the behemoth, a necessity, but not a pleasure. Vincent would not be terribly bothered if he was expelled, and both Hellmasker and Death Gigas, while strong, were not incredibly smart. Oh, Hellmasker was cunning, but if he was on the losing end of a fight, he would not back down. The emotionless demon could not feel much in the way of pain, and would easily fight to the death. Death Gigas was simply stupid. Vincent had little doubt the lightning elemental would be the first to go.

But if Chaos was released... To put it simply, chaos would ensue. The demon would live up to his name and wreak havoc and destruction wherever he went, because it pleased him. He enjoyed causing pain and suffering. He loved the smell of blood, loved the taste of it. If Vincent didn't call him back from battle quickly enough, he would feast on the prey and often roll himself in the blood - leaving poor Vincent in dire need of a bath and a clean change of clothes. And Chaos was the most powerful of the demons. He'd been a valuable asset in fighting against Sephiroth. If the demon could so easily cause damage in the fledgeling God, Vincent shuddered to think the damage he could cause to the rest of the world if he was unhindered.

Vincent shook his head. No, he could never let Chaos go. At the very moment he made that decision, Chaos roared in his head and attempted to force a transformation. If Vincent would not go, Chaos would _make_ him go. The gunslinger doubled over in agony, gritting his teeth and tightly clenching his eyes shut as he fought against the demon. Pain flared through his body, as it always did whenever he resisted the change.

Galian looked on at the pair with silent worry. He'd heard Vincent's thoughts as easily as Chaos, and he agreed with them. Chaos could not be released. He would be the death of them all, Vincent and Galian included. He had no doubts that the larger demon would put an end to Vincent's life as quickly as possible. He'd been itching to do it for so long. Vincent was already weakened from losing both Hellmasker and Death Gigas. It looked like Chaos might win over, and they were surrounded by the dripping Lifestream. There was no doubt in the behemoth's mind that there was probably a pool of Lifestream located somewhere in this city. They had to leave it as quickly as possible.

And so, while Chaos and Vincent struggled for control, Galian made up his mind and charged forward, taking both gunslinger and hell demon by surprise as he forced his way through and took control of Vincent's body. Pale flesh turned to dark purple fur, raven tresses turning to fiery red mane. Hands and feet turned into clawed paws, a whip-like tail shooting out from behind him and snapping against the ground. Vincent's face extended outward to a muzzle, the crimson of his irises bleeding out to spread over the entire eye, glowing intensely from the mako exposure.

Galian shook himself off to rid himself of the sticky, viscious goo clinging to his fur, quickly taking off through the rubble and heading out of Midgar. Chaos, upon realizing Galian's intent, let loose a bellow of rage as Vincent receeded, content that Galian was with him to not allow Chaos to escape.

It was always good to have an ally against someone such as Chaos.

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Emri - Thanks for your reviews and pointing out the goof with his cloak. X3 Silly me, but I fixed it. As for your questions, well... All in due time! 


	4. The Chase is On

What Makes a Monster?

Chapter Four: The Chase is On

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Cloud gently ran his hands over Tifa's arms from behind her while she sat on a bar stool and sobbed, clutching the scraps of Vincent's cloak to her face. Nanaki sat at her feet, his head in her lap, ears pressed flat in sympathetic grief. Nearby, Cid had drank himself into a painless stupor. Yuffie cradled a cup of tea in both palms, tears spilling down her face, while Cait sat beside her morosely. Barret seemed the least affected by the situation.

In fact, if Barret were to voice his opinion out loud, he'd have told them to buy a ladder and get the hell over it. The silent gunman, the former Turk, had always made him nervous and he hated the thought of having him as an ally from the start. Rather unlike the boisterous, warm-hearted former commander of Avalanche, Vincent was as cold and unfeeling as the blizzards north of Icicle Village. And just as deadly.

As it was, Barret was forced to soothe Marlene as she wailed against his broad chest, pretending to be just as upset about losing Vincent as she was. He didn't know why Marlene had taken such a liking to him. In fact, he made it a point to remove Marlene from Vincent's presence whenever he saw her in it. He just didn't trust him.

That, and anyone who spent all his time moaning over some dead chick in some cave couldn't be healthy for Marlene to be around.

Tifa was the first to speak up, her voice choked with tears, "...I feel like such a horrible person..."

All eyes, save Cid's, turned to her in confusion.

"...I barely ever tried to speak with him. I should have. I mean... I know he wanted his space, I respected that... But... Maybe I shouldn't have... He always seemed to be in so much pain... And when he was lying there, and the glass was breaking... He looked so confused... Like he was wondering why we would care about him... Why we'd care that he was going to die... And I felt... so horrible, that I let him think I wasn't a friend of his for even an instant..." Tifa's voice finally broke as she dissolved into tears once more.

Cloud closed his eyes, squeezing her shoulders. "You treated him with respect and I'm sure he appreciated that, Tifa... I don't think he quite knew what to do with you sometimes.. He wasn't used to being shown kindness. But you showed it to him and you weren't put off by his cold demeanor. You did the best you could."

Yuffie burst into tears. "You think _you're_ a horrible person! You were nice to him! I did nothing but annoy him!"

Nanaki lifted his head from Tifa's lap and sighed, "There is no point in regretting what was and was not done." His young voice was tainted by sorrow, his one good eye weighed down with grief. "We lost one of our best fighters after he helped us save this world. He did not have to continue with us after he extracted his revenge on Hojo. He sacrificed himself to our cause... And the best we can do is make sure his efforts are known, that he will not go down in history as some nameless hero, unknown and unappreciated."

Soft murmurs of agreement were voiced around the bar as Tifa lifted her tear-streaked face from the cloak and attempted to fold it somewhat neatly. The quiet peace that had descended on the bar was broken by a shriek outside the bar, quickly followed by more screams and cries for help. Immediately the group got up and left the bar, leaving Cid and Marlene behind.

Exiting the bar, Avalanche found themselves in the midsts of a panic. Kalm was flooded with people who had fled Midgar, and all of them were running east as quickly as they could. The screams and cries filled the air, punctuated with cries of "Monster!" Pushing against the crowd, the members of Avalance ran straight toward the disturbance. The monsters almost never entered the towns or cities, though it did happen every once in a while. Cloud somewhat assumed that the worst they were facing were the wolves that inhabited the area around them. His assumptions were proven false when he heard the bone-chillingly familiar scream of a chainsaw, and rounded the corner to see Hellmasker driving its chainsaw into a dead body on the ground, sending blood and flesh flying up, splattering the hockey-mask of a face.

Barret suddenly ran into Cloud from behind, sending the far-smaller blonde crashing down on his face. The others skidded to a stop, none of them able to believe their eyes.

"H-hellmasker!" Yuffie sputtered, clutching her shuriken close, her eyes wide. "B-but Vinnie's... he's dead!"

Nanaki growled as his fiery tail lashed from side to side, "Vincent would never allow Hellmasker, or any of his demons to hurt innocent people. He's always had very good control over the weaker three."

"..Is that why Hellmasker is here...?" Tifa whispered, her hands clutched to her chest as Hellmasker continued to mutilate the body, its head swaying from side to side like the pendelum on a clock. "..Because Vincent is gone...?"

"It's possible," Nanaki replied stonily. "But let's discuss this later, after we stop it from killing anyone else." Without waiting for a reply, the lion-like wolf ran forward and leapt onto the demon, tearing into it fiercely. Taking their cue from him, Cloud and Tifa ran forward to assist Nanaki while the others went around to the still-living people and cast curative spells on them.

Cloud ducked the swinging chainsaw and sliced into the broad chest, knocking the demon back and sending its head rotating madly before swinging back to its usual sway. Tifa darted in as he fell back to deliver several staggering punches and kicks, darting around the somewhat clumsy demon to avoid the swinging chainsaw. As she leapt back, Nanaki delivered a quick blast of Fire 3 that made the demon stagger. The three of them worked tirelessly, whittling the demon down while only occasionally getting nicked by the swinging chainsaw.

Hellmasker knew it had to pull out all the stops if it was to survive, but a part of it was confused. It remembered the three Avalanche members, and it remembered Vincent's stern orders that they were not enemies and it was not to attack them. Of course, Vincent could not control its actions any longer, and these three had turned on it and attacked it first. The demon was mostly emotionless, but it could feel confusion, and it could feel betrayal. It knew that these people had turned on it, when it had not caused them any harm. So, it would fight with all its might. Spreading its arms, a blue mist surrounded it, its head thrown back as it cast Nightmare upon them.

Cloud staggered, slumping forward as the menagerie of status effects hit him, unable to comprehend what was happening as he found himself unable to speak, and he fell asleep. Hellmasker advanced on Cloud, but Nanaki was swift to tackle him out of the way as Tifa ran to Cloud's side and tried to wake him up. Her hands were shaking as she pulled out a Remedy from her pocket and tipped Cloud's head back, pouring the liquid into his mouth and massaging his throat to make him swallow it. Within moments, the leader of Avalanche spluttered and coughed, mako blue eyes creaking open to blink up at Tifa as his senses returned to him. He didn't have long to reflect on what happened when Nanaki's feral scream snapped them back to attention, just in time to see Hellmasker finish its Splattercombo on him. Immediately Cloud sent Tifa to tend to Nanaki as he charged forward, swinging his sword and slicing into the demon in the dizzying blur of movement known as Omnislash.

The spiky-haired youth leapt back, panting, as Hellmasker staggered and slowly slumped forward, the scream of its chainsaw dying down and stopping. He waited with baited breath, waiting for it to change back into the body of their former comrade... But nothing happened. Even when Cloud slowly approached the fallen demon and nudged it with his boot, it did nothing. It was dead. He turned his head and looked back at Tifa as she helped Nanaki to his feet while he recovered from the curative spell. The others joined them and they all stood in a circle, staring at the fallen demon.

"...Why doesn't it change back?" Yuffie stammered, dancing around it on tiptoe as if it were some nasty insect, even reaching out her shuriken to poke at its motionless form.

"I don't--" Nanaki began, but cut himself off as he turned his head and sniffed the air, his hackles rising as a low growl rumbled up. His head suddenly turned sharply to the side, his fierce eye focusing on the shadowed form in one of the alleyways. As the others followed his line of sight, he growled lowly, "..The Galian Beast."

* * *

A/N - Ahaha... Cliffie. Please don't kill me.

Thanks everyone for the positive comments on this fic. PLEASE keep reviewing. This fic needs you. And the more you bug me, the more likely I'll get off my ass and work on it.


	5. Demon Hunters

What Makes A Monster?

Chapter Five: Demon Hunters

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Galian growled lowly as all the Avalanche members turned to stare at him with mingled looks of anger, apprehension, and confusion. The fiery mane bristled, his body lowering as his long whip-like tail cracked against the ground. 

_Do not fight them, Galian!_ Vincent hissed lowly, having witnessed with more than a little unease at how quickly Hellmasker was dispatched. _You saw how quickly they took care of Hellmasker._

_I know,_ Galian snarled inwardly, backing up a pace and lowering his body further to the ground, ready to flee. _But if I run, they will pursue me, and I do not know if I can outrun Nanaki._

_Then stop snarling! If you do not act aggressively, they may reconsider. _Even though Galian had taken over his body and turned it, he could feel his heart clench with unease, could feel the adrenaline coursing through the miniature behemoth's body.

The lion-like wolf slowly began stalking towards them, teeth pulled back to growl, muscles rippling in his powerful legs, ready to pounce at any given moment. Galian had stopped growling and now simply stared at Nanaki, ears pressed flat as his body kept moving lower to the ground, his own muscles tense and ready to move. _What do I do, then? Just stand here like an idiot?_

_Nanaki will be more attuned to your body language than the others,_ Vincent spoke quickly in the demon's mind, never moving his attention from the fiery-tailed feline. _Show your submission to him. Grovel, if you must. Do not give him an excuse to attack you._

Of course, Galian may have been an exception to many areas of demonic society (such as getting along with one's host and allying oneself against another demon who planned to do demonic things), but he had a demon's pride, and he did _not_ want to grovel to the far younger creature. His ears flattened, but he knew there was not much else that could be done in these circumstances. Lowering himself completely until his chest touched the ground, he whimpered lowly and swayed his tail from side to side low to the ground, inching closer to the other and resting his chin on the ground, crimson eyes staring pleadingly up at the advancing feline.

Nanaki paused in his advance, lips covering his sharp teeth as his head tilted to the side in sheer bafflement that this demon, of which he knew to only cause death when unleashed, now cowering at his paws like a pup and pleading not to be harmed. _I suppose it's understandable,_ he thought to himself as he regarded the demon skeptically. _It's entire life probably just took a complete turn and it's confused and looking for someone familiar to ally itself with, most likely..._ The other members of Avalanche seemed unsure as to how to treat the miniature behemoth, and seemed content to let Nanaki handle this one. _Humans,_ he huffed inwardly, slowly moving forward to sniff at one of the demon's large horns, then down to the muzzle, every muscle coiled tightly, ready to spring. Another low whimper, and he could feel himself relaxing, stepping back to sit down in front of the behemoth and tilt his head to the side.

Galian closed his eyes with relief and let himself relax, his tail falling still against the ground. _I nearly shat myself._

_How charming, Galian,_ Chaos grumbled, pouting in the background, but biding his time.

Vincent also allowed himself to relax. _Perhaps I should take over again, Galian? We are far enough away from Midgar, and the others will not allow Chaos to take over._

_I don't see why not._ Galian slowly lifted his head, letting himself recede back into Vincent's mind. Now that his mind and body were calm, Vincent could re-assert control. The massive horns seemed to suck back into the demon's head, the muzzle becoming blunt and the ears shrinking down. The long whip-like tail was re-absorbed, fur disappearing, and soon the black-clad ex-Turk was all that remained, hunched over and breathing deeply, his long raven hair hanging down over his face.

Vincent barely got time to recover when something hit him, and he was knocked backwards with a startled gasp as a pair of thin arms wrapped around his neck and squeezed, accompanied by a loud wail. He found himself blinking up at the sky, murmuring softly, "Hello, Yuffie."

"Vincent!" Cloud and Tifa ran forward, kneeling down beside him. Tifa laughingly tried to pry Yuffie off the stoic gunman even as tears spilled down her cheeks. Once that was accomplished, Cloud helped Vincent sit up, but froze as a pair of overbright, cat-like crimson eyes turned to focus on him wearily. _Turn them green and they'd look exactly like Sephiroth's eyes,_ Cloud mused uneasily, but snapped out of it after a moment. "It's good to see you again," He stated with a smile, rising up and offering his hand to help him stand up.

Vincent took his hand in his own, pulling himself to his feet. He'd noticed Cloud's unease, but supposed that his eyes were probably a lot brighter now. He wouldn't expect any less. He'd barely regained his balance when Tifa hugged him, and he stiffened all over again at what he felt was another unnecessary display of feminine affection.

"How did you survive that! How could you possibly have survived falling into the Lifestream and being thrown on Midgar while it was burning!" He could barely make out her voice, her face buried in his lean chest. "A-and... And how... How was Hellmasker here and you weren't!"

He cleared his throat slightly, and she seemed to take the hint and backed off, blushing sheepishly. Everyone was gathered around now, all of their eyes focused on Vincent. One by one they seemed to notice the change in his eyes, confusion and wariness passing briefly over their expressions. "...I do not know how I survived. The Lifestream caused Hellmasker and Death Gigas to be expelled from my body. I still retain Galian and Chaos, but... Chaos is trying to force me to seek out another place where the Lifestream has congregated, so that he can expell himself from my body and do as he pleases."

Their reactions were unanimous. Everyone flinched heavily. They could only imagine what sort of havoc Chaos would cause, and how difficult it would be to stop him. After all, Chaos could _fly_, and he was capable of killing several enemies with a single blow.

"So.. What do you plan to do?" Cloud slowly asked, folding his arms across his chest and looking back at Hellmasker. "It's obvious Chaos can't be released. If Hellmasker alone could cause this sort of damage, Chaos would be a thousand times worse." He paused, then turned his attention back to Vincent. "How much control do you have over Chaos?"

"Galian and I are working together to prevent him from escaping..." Vincent began slowly, feeling akward talking about his demons, of which he avoided talking about before. "But even then, it may be possible for Chaos to eventually take over. If that happens, he will need to be stopped."

Barret sneered, "And lemme guess, yo' dumpin' this on our shoulders so you don' have to take responsibility, Turk?"

"Barret!" Tifa scolded, putting her hand on his arm to restrain him.

"No," Vincent interrupted, before any more could be said. "I am asking for your help because I am aware I may not be able to do this on my own, and it would be a greater sin to allow such a thing to happen without taking measures to make sure he is stopped. I don't want any more innocent people killed over this..."

"So what are you going to do until that time?" Cloud asked Vincent, shifting his weight to one leg and looking seriously at the ex-Turk. He didn't have a problem with them helping him out if he needed it. He'd more or less saved Nanaki's life and he'd always been there for them in battle. He was taking the situation seriously and responsibly. What more could be asked of him?

"I want to hunt down Death Gigas," Vincent decided after a moment's thought. "He takes first priority because he has already been expelled and may be heading to other towns to cause harm there."

"He'd have to go through the swamps to do so.. And probably encounter a Midgar Zolom or two along the way," Cloud mused. "Zoloms aren't sensitive to lightning attacks so there's a chance he could be killed by them."

"But the Chocobo Farm is on the way to the swamps!" Yuffie interjected. "We can't just let that thing go and kill them before getting killed by a Zolom!"

"Yuffie's right," Tifa added. "We should head there now and make sure they're all right."

Vincent paused for a moment, sighing, "I think it would be in the best interests of everyone involved if we split up. Death Gigas is rather slow. He may be headed here as we speak." He looked at Cloud.

"That's a good idea," Cloud relented. "Besides, someone has to stay to keep an eye on Cid. He drank himself into a stupor," He explained to the ebony-maned gunman. Turning to the rest of the group, he looked over them. "Okay.. Vincent and I will head down to check on the Chocobo Farm. Yuffie, come with us. Tifa, Barret, Nanaki, you're in charge of Kalm and keeping a look out for Cid."

"..Where is Cait Sith?" Vincent questioned quietly.

"Oh, Reeve called him back because he needed to do some repairs. He got pretty banged up in the fight against Sephiroth," Yuffie explained.

"...I see."

"All right everyone, let's mosey!" Cloud chimed in, turning on his heel to head out of the city. The statement was accompanied by the usual groans as the two groups split off to go in their seperate directions.

* * *

A/N: Another chapter! And some actual PLOT DEVELOPMENT! Gasp! e.e; 

This weekend I'm going to be participating in a study at a place called Pracs Institute, where basically I'm gonna get paid a shatload of money to be a guinea pig. I'll have to stay there for five days straight - overnight and everything. But I'll be borrowing a laptop and hopefully it'll give me plenty of time to work on my fanfics. I'll probably be putting most of my efforts into this one, since it's an idea I've had for such a long time, but just never had much time to go about writing it.

Cross your fingers and REVIEW!


	6. Death Gigas' Bad Day

What Makes A Monster?

Chapter Six: Death Gigas' Bad Day

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A/N: Sorry for the lapse in updating... Remember the thing I said about Pracs Institute? The dickwads called me up the very day before I would have gone in and told me the nicotine test came up positive, so I couldn't participate. Damn second-hand smoke. So I wound up working my butt off and not getting much time to even be on the computer, much less write a story. I'll try to be better about it, but... Dirge of Cerberus is coming out in less than a week! WAAH. ..Which means I'll probably not eat or sleep until I finish that game. The good thing? It'll probably kick my Vincent muse into overdrive for the next few months. XD

Also, ruler bar thing is not working... For some odd reason. So, the dotted lines.

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Vincent grunted slightly as the buggy bounced and jumped over the terrain. He hated this mode of transportation... Especially since common sense as a gentleman dictated that Yuffie sit up front, which left him in the open area of the back. Yuffie may have been a brat and a thief, but she was still a young woman, and in Vincent's mind, still deserved to be treated as much... While she behaved, anyway.

CA-THUNK! Vincent's claw arm shot out to grip the side of the buggy while a pothole sent the lightweight ex-Turk jumping upward, only to hit his head on the roof with another muffled thud. Lifting his hand to his head, he grimaced heavily and braced his boots more firmly against the floor, not that it would help much.

Yuffie burst into giggles as she looked back at him. "Ow, that must've hurt. You okay, Vinnie?"

The only response he dignified her was a deadpanned glare before turning his gaze out the back of the buggy once more. He simply could not wait until they got out of this thing. They took the buggy so they could cover more ground searching for Death Gigas. Their first stop was the Chocobo Farm, before circling around it and heading back up on patrol. After nearly four hours of driving around, Vincent's spine and tailbone were killing him. He was ready to just get out and search on foot.

"What's that?" Yuffie asked, pointing out the window.

"Just a rock," Cloud replied boredly. "We've passed that one by several times now."

"..." Vincent sighed and turned around to lean over into the front, bracing his stomach on the back of the seat. His crimson eyes scanned the plains. Strange, for a rock that large to be out in the middle of a grassy field. Wait... He leaned forward a bit more and narrowed his eyes. "That..." Vincent deadpanned, "Is Death Gigas."

"What!" Cloud slammed on his brakes, and with a startled 'oomph!', Vincent was sent tumbling out from the back and into the front, throwing back his head and flinching as the stick shift slammed into his lower back. Yuffie screamed, Cloud yelled, and the buggie made all sorts of disgusting noises as it ground to a halt.

Face contorted, Vincent struggled to sit up as pain flared through his back and head. "Argh... I'd appreciate it if you remembered that there are only _two_ seatbelts in this vehicle, Cloud."

Yuffie started giggling uncontrollably, soon bursting into hysterical laughter at the rather akward position Vincent had wound up in with his feet up on the dashboard. Cloud, on the other hand, quickly unbuckled himself and scooted over to help Vincent sit up. "I'm sorry! Are you okay!"

"...I think I broke the stick shift," Vincent mumbled under his breath, stiffly moving out of that akward position. "Cloud, get out of the car, please." He wanted out of this damned buggy. _Yesterday._

Just as he put his hand on the steering wheel to support himself as he climbed out, he turned his head to look out at Death Gigas again. "...Cloud?"

"Yeah?" Cloud blinked slightly, holding the door open for Vincent.

"Close the door." Vincent moved to sit down in Cloud's place, buckling his seatbelt.

"What...?"

"Just do it. And be ready to back us up."

"Uh..." Cloud didn't have a clue as to what Vincent had in mind, but he closed the door regardless. Yuffie was looking at Vincent in confusion as he started the car moving again, turning it around so it was heading straight at Death Gigas. Maneuvering the broken shaft, they began to pick up speed.

"...OMYGAWD!" Yuffie screeched as she quickly buckled her seatbelt again. "Vincent! Are you NUTS! We're going to run over an elemental demon of _lightning_ in a _metal vehicle!_"

"Rubber tires," He replied calmly. "They'll absorb the effects of the lightning."

"_You're crazier than Cloud is!_ Oh my gawd, oh my gawd, we're gonna die! We're gonna die!"

"Be quiet, Yuffie."

"AaaaaaAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHH!"

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Death Gigas was having a very good day. A very, very good day. For once, he had some peace and quiet. No more confusing voices bickering constantly all around him. No more struggling for control, only to be constantly shoved out of the way by the other demons.

In fact, Death Gigas was quite enjoying himself as he lumbered through the grassy plains. A little flash of blue caught his attention. Leaning down, he plucked up a bright blue flower, lifting it up to his face. His wide mouth split into a toothy grin. "Pretty..."

Sitting down in the grass, he held the flower carefully in two fingers, while the massive fingers of the other hand stroked the soft petals. In the distance, he could hear thunder. Good. Death Gigas liked storms. Too bad it wasn't dark and cloudy out, those were his favorite kinds of storms.

Wait...

Tilting his head back, he blinked at the clear, sunny sky overhead. "...Urgh?" Looking around, he tried to identify the source of the thunder. Well, there was a weird brick-thing that kept getting bigger. Maybe that was causing it? Wait.. That was a car-thing. He remembered those. They had people in them. Climbing to his feet, he turned toward the buggy seconds before it impacted with his body and sent him tumbling up over the top of the vehicle, spinning through the air, until he landed heavily on his chin and flopped to the ground. The little blue flower floated gently down from the sky and landed on the ground next to Death Gigas' head.

Death Gigas was not having a very good day anymore.

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"AAAAAAAAAHHH-HAHAHAHAA! WOOHOO!" Yuffie crowed, after she stopped hiding her face behind her hands.

Shifting the gears down, Vincent slowed down the buggy and turned it back around, picking up speed again. A sadistic little smirk was plastered on his lips, cat-like pupils narrowed to slits.

"Vincent Valentine, you are a MADMAN! LET'S GET HIM!"

He couldn't be more in agreement with Yuffie at that moment. Perhaps this was what they called 'bonding'...?

Cloud's eyes went wide as he saw the buggy impact with the demon, sending it flying through the air. His eyes widened even further as the buggy turned back around and ran over the demon just as it was trying to get up. "...That _can't_ be good for the buggy..." Shaking his head, he began to run forward, drawing his sword as the buggy slowed to a stop with Vincent and Yuffie climbing out, weapons at ready.

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Death Gigas grunted and slowly forced open his eyes after getting squashed into the ground by the raging buggy. The first thing his eyes settled on was the little blue flower, smashed into the ground. Fists clenching in rage, Death Gigas lurched to his feet and let out a roar, sparks flying all over his body. That was it. They were going to _pay!_

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"Whoooa... Wow, Vinnie, looks like you _really_ pissed him off!"

Vincent sent her a sidelong glance as he loaded Cerberus. "A minute ago, it was 'we'."

"I never said 'we'!" Yuffie bounced from foot to foot as she waited for Death Gigas to approach them.

"'We' as in 'let's', a shortened version of 'let _us'_."

"Oh, stop being so technical, Vinnie, you're so BORING!" With that contradictory statement, she ran off to meet Death Gigas, throwing her shuriken out with a battle cry.

Vincent rolled his eyes skyward and advanced forward slowly, lifting Cerberus to take careful aim.

Meanwhile, inside Vincent's subconscious, Chaos and Galian were having a heated discussion.

**_Are you blind! Did you not see how carelessly and easily he mowed down Death Gigas? The demon he's had nearly as long as yourself!_** Chaos snarled, bristling with rage. **_He would do the same for you the moment he got the chance!_**

**_I do not believe that, _**Galian replied calmly. **_Vincent and I share a mutual like for each other._**

_**Vincent never had a particular dislike of Death Gigas, aside from the obvious 'demon in my head' thing. He's still a Turk at heart, so willing to turn on us, the very demons who have helped him in battle hundreds of times, helped him defeat Sephiroth himself! Doesn't it bother you how easily he goes to kill Death Gigas?**_

Galian was silent. Yes, Vincent's callousness toward his fellow demon was... disconcerting, but... Vincent and he were nearly friends. They worked together. They agreed on many things.

**_Don't you want to be free of this body?_** Chaos egged him on. **_Or do you truly want to be trapped here forever, always a slave to him? And what about Vincent? As long as we are in his body, he will not age or get sick. It's almost impossible for him to die while we are inside him. Don't you think he'll get tired of that? He's only human!_**

Galian growled lowly, growing agitated. **_The problem is YOU, Chaos!_**

**_What would I want with this world? Sure, death and destruction are nice to take the edge off, but I do not plan on staying in this realm. I would be more than happy to just return to our own dimension!_** Chaos was practically frothing at the mouth with frustration. **_Galian, come ON. You are a demon! Start acting like one!_**

Vincent narrowly avoided another burst of lightning, rolling to the ground and turning his demonic eyes toward Death Gigas. Breathing deeply, he scrambled backwards as a heavy punch landed in the ground right in front of him. Death Gigas was more or less ignoring Yuffie and Cloud, his rage centered solely on his former host. The ex-Turk's chest was constricted in growing fury, though he did not understand why he was so enraged right now. He was completely unaware of the conversation taking place, and unaware that the demons' tempers were directly impacting his own.

Raising his gun, he fired off another shot at Death Gigas, gritting his teeth as the monster howled in agony. Another burst of lightning shot out, and this time the blast hit its mark. Vincent was thrown back by the blast, his body spasming as the voltage poured through his body, magnified further by his metal arm. Distracted and completely unaware of the demons' conversation within him, he was caught off-guard as Chaos abruptly forced a transformation.

Desperate to get out before Galian and Vincent could team up on him again, Vincent's clothes tore and blood burst out from his body as he literally _exploded_ into the form of Chaos, wings snapping out and sending a spray of blood onto the faces of the two humans and the demon nearby. Slowly straightening up, the massive demon turned his gaze upon the other three, lip curled upward in a sneer to expose long, sharp teeth.

Cloud's mako-blue eyes widened significantly as he stared up at the demon, dripping with blood. Vincent's transformations had _never_ been that violent and bloody. Even when he fought the change, it was never like that... _"Chaos is trying to force me to seek out another place where the Lifestream has congregated, so that he can expell himself from my body and do as he pleases."_ Abruptly realizing Chaos's intentions, he ran forward, ignoring Death Gigas as he lifted his sword to strike.

The massive demon crouched down and leapt up into the air, spreading his massive wings to take him up high into the sky, raining blood down upon the three gathered below. Lifting a claw into the air, he summoned a storm of flaming skulls to rain down upon the three.

"OH SHIT!" Yuffie screeched, shortly before she was hit by several of the skulls and knocked out cold. Death Gigas howled as it fell to the ground, Cloud bracing himself behind a shield he'd just barely managed to lift in time.

Betrayed by his fellow demon, Death Gigas lay on his back, his body beginning to shut down and die. Determined not to go without some sort of revenge, he used every last bit of energy he had to summon up a lightning bolt, which darted out and impacted Chaos squarely in the stomach. Seeing the massive demon spasm and fall from the air, his mouth split into a toothy grin as his head fell to the side. The last thing he saw was another small blue flower nestled in the tall grass, gently bobbing in the breeze. **_Pretty..._**

Chaos landed with a heavy thud on the ground, grunting as his muscles twitched uncontrollably. **_Damn... Didn't realize Death Gigas could pack such a punch._** Slowly climbing to all fours, he heard a rustling in the grass and jerked his head up just in time to see Cloud swing his sword in an arc, the blade slamming into the massive demon's body. Snarling and struggling to his feet, he was hit again, and again, and again. The massive demon was more red than black by this point, falling to his knees under Cloud's relentless assault. Cursing heavily, he could feel his hold on Vincent's body slipping, and fell back to the ground as his body began to transform back.

Not bothering to watch as Vincent's body reverted back to normal, Cloud staggered over to Yuffie and gathered her up in his arms, taking her to the buggy. He set her down in the back, turning to go back over to Vincent's unconscious form. His brows were drawn down, deep in thought as he trekked through the grass. Pausing briefly to examine Death Gigas' form and make sure he was dead, he sighed heavily. _I wonder what happened... How Chaos was able to force a transformation like that. I can't imagine how much that must have hurt. If he can do that any time he pleases... We're going to be in deep shit. We can't leave Vincent alone for a minute._ Kneeling down beside the ex-Turk, he gently rolled him over...

His breath caught in his chest. Staring down at Vincent's face, he hesitantly reached out to touch one of the long horns rising up out of his thick, dark hair. His fingers then traveled to his ears, which had grown absurdly long and pointed. _What the Hell...?_ He waited for several seconds, just to see if perhaps he hadn't finished changing back... but nothing happened. Now even more troubled, he reached down to pick up Vincent's motionless form. _Huh... Strange. I always thought he'd be all skin and bones... He looks a lot more frail than this. And he looks like he'd weigh less too... But he's nothing but lean, solid muscle. Sheesh._

Cloud put Vincent in the front seat, buckling him in. At least this way, if he woke up and Chaos tried taking over again, the belt might at least hold him back a little bit. He could keep a better eye on him this way, too. Climbing into the driver's side seat, he started up the buggy and headed back for Kalm. Maybe when Vincent woke up, he'd be able to provide some answers.

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A/N - I started this chapter before Dirge of Cerberus came out. I finished it while I'm still on Chapter Five. All I have to say is...

Oh. My. Freaking. Gawd.

Vincent has been my all-time favorite video game/movie/WHATEVER character since FFVII came out. This is like... This game makes my life complete. I can die without regrets now. Ha... well, no, not really, but you get what I mean. I am a Vincent Freak. As in...

ShadowWolf: (Presses the X button to make Turk Vincent jump in the simulation program)

Vincent: Hup.

ShadowWolf: ...! EEEEEEEEEEEEEE! OMYGAWD HE MADE A NOISE! THAT IS SO CUTE! (Presses the X button over and over again)

Vincent: Hup. Hup. Hup. Hup.

ShadowWolf: OMYFREAKINGGAWD!

So yeah. I'm a huge dork. But I love this game, and any Vincent fan should get it. You will not be disappointed.

I was also looking back at this chapter and realized the latter half of it was very rushed and kind of... clumped together. Heh... sorry about that. I guess it turned out that way because I wanted to spend as little time finishing this chapter as possible so I could get back to playing. But I had much fun writing the first half. Anyhoo, see you guys later!


	7. Extreme Makeover

What Makes A Monster?

Chapter 7: Extreme Makeover

* * *

Vincent grunted as his head impacted against the door of the buggy for the umpteenth time, slowly opening his feline eyes. For several moments he squinted, trying to clear his blurred vision and trying to remember what had happened to result in being in so much pain. He remembered fighting Death Gigas... He remembered the lightning bolt that had hit him dead on. And then... he remembered the sensation of his entire body ripping apart as Chaos forced his way out.

His body jolting forward in brief panic, he glanced around the buggy - at Cloud driving the vehicle and the small, unconscious form of Yuffie curled in his lap. Taking a deep breath, he exhaled loudly as he realized that they were both all right. Which meant Chaos was still inside of him.

Watching him out of the corner of his eye, Cloud examined Vincent's new features yet again. The upward-growing horns had not receeded an inch, and those long ears were still in place. "...How are you feeling?"

"..." Vincent declined a response as he glanced around. His head felt heavy, and the car... "...I must have damaged the buggy... My apologies. I'll pay for the repairs."

"What are you talking about?" Cloud blinked at him. "It's driving the same as it was before. The grill is a little bent, but that's nothing Cid can't hammer back into place."

"...The engine sounds like it's straining. It's far too loud for the speed we're currently traveling."

Cloud stared at him, then shook his head and gazed back out the window. "Nah - it's the same. Your hearing just got a lot better." He saw Vincent staring at him from his perhipheral vision, his gaze remaining deadpanned as they neared Kalm. "Touch your ears. And your forehead."

Vincent's features contorted in confusion. _What the hell is he talking about?_ After several moments he obliged, slowly reaching up to touch one of his ears. His fingers immediately felt how long they were, and with a start he realized that he could move them too. Eyes growing ever-wider, he slowly reached up for his forehead, dreading what he would find. His fingers touched the solid, warm bone curling up from his head. Reaching up, he abruptly snapped the rearview mirror around and stared straight into his own cat-like eyes. Sucking in his breath sharply, his eyes darted over his new features. _How.. is this happening?_

The spiky-haired blonde felt his grimness grow more acute at Vincent's near-panicked confusion. Part of him had expected the ex-Turk to know why it'd happened... After all, he knew more about the experiments conducted on himself than the rest of them. Vincent's reaction worried him. There were too many unknowns in this situation.

"When we get back to Tifa's bar," Cloud began, turning Vincent's gaze slowly back to him, "You're going to have to tell us everything you know about the experiments conducted on you, and everything you know about your demons."

The defiance in his eyes was instant. Such things were an intensely private matter in an intensely private man, and just spewing them out to everyone did not sit well with him. "No."

Cloud bristled slightly. "We need to know what you know, Vincent, if we're going to help you at all. There are too many things going on right now that I have no idea how to react to. We need this information." His bright blue eyes narrowed on the ex-Turk at the continuing defiant silence. "You _will_ tell us, Vincent. It doesn't have to be really intimate details - just the stuff we really need to know in this situation."

Growling softly with frustration, Vincent's lip curled back from a single sharp fang as he stared back out the window. Cloud started slightly at seeing it, then turned his gaze back to driving. "What's happening to you, Vincent?"

"...I don't know."

And with that, the ex-Turk refused to say another word until they'd reached Tifa's bar in Kalm.

* * *

Cloud called everyone up on the PHS just outside of Kalm and informed them that Death Gigas had been eliminated, adding that they needed to have a meeting at Tifa's bar immediately. Tifa had managed to wake Cid up, filling him in on the entire situation. She didn't think she'd ever heard the Captain cuss so joyfully before... Indeed, never thought that cussing could be taken in joyful terms at all.

The joyous stream of explicatives was cut off as Cloud walked into the bar with Yuffie in his arms, followed thereafter by the elf-eared, horned, and fanged Mr. Valentine. All conversation died as all eyes were on Vincent. Hating the feel of their shocked, horrified, and curious gazes, Vincent slunk to a corner and tried to disappear into the shadows.

Cid was the first to speak. "...Christ, Tifa, what the fuck? Please tell me I'm the only goddamned one seeing that, because that's fucking weird. You sure that hangover remedy doesn't make you fuckin' hallucinate?"

"No, Cid..." Tifa whispered softly as she began to work on Yuffie, trickling potions down her throat. "...You're not the only one."

Nanaki turned his feline head toward Cloud, one ear perked forward. "You neglected to mention this in the phone calls." While he didn't have his own PHS, he could overhear the conversations held on them.

Sighing, Cloud sat up on one of the stools as Yuffie came around. "There was little point... We don't know why it's happening to him or how to fix it." Turning his gaze to Vincent, his head tilted wearily to one side. "But to begin to formulate ideas, we need to know what you know. Tell us about your experiments, Vincent."

All eyes turned to Cloud rather than Vincent on this one, most in surprise, some in horror. Vincent's secretive nature was not unknown, and there had been a time or two in the past when he'd been pestered too often and had eloquently told them with a clawed hand around their throat to kindly leave him be.

Shrugging innocently at the looks given him, Cloud turned his gaze back to Vincent expectantly. With a heavy sigh, the ex-Turk began his tale.

"I was twenty-seven when Hojo shot me and killed me in his labratory. He revived me, brought me back from the dead. To do so, he had to refuel my lifesource, so to speak. He was in possession of a demon grimoire and used it to summon the Galian Beast, entrapping him in crystalized mako - making him into a Materia summon. From there, the materia was infused into my body, merging with me. I do not know how he did this - only that it worked, and Galian's consciousness merged into my own. He repeated the process with Death Gigas, Hellmasker, and Chaos - but those three remained in hibernation. As I joined the rest of you, my strength grew to the point where Hellmasker and Death Gigas awakened. Chaos' slumber was deep enough that I needed Lucrecia's aid in awakening him for our cause.

"Because of the demons' power influencing me, my body is stronger, faster, and more resilient than a normal human's. Because of their power ensuring my continued existence, I am neither dead nor alive - and I am certainly not aging. Because of their power, I can see in perfect darkness, and I can go long periods of time without food or water. I rarely feel temperature changes unless they are extreme. I cannot become ill."

At a brief pause, Yuffie raised her hand as if she were in school and asking the teacher a question. At Vincent's glance, she asked curiously, "What about the arm? Did you have that as a Turk?"

Under normal circumstances she would have been scolded for being so brazen, but they needed to know whatever they could. "No," Vincent sighed, closing his eyes. "Hojo removed it simply to test out a new line of prosthetics he had created, attaching wires to the severed nerve endings so they can be controlled as a normal arm. It is actually one of the first models that led to the creation of gun-arms later on, such as the one Barett possesses."

Barett didn't look very pleased to be told the originator of his gun-arm was Professor Hojo himself. "So what's up with you? Why you suddenly turning all demonic on us?"

Vincent took a deep breath, letting it out in a quiet sigh. "I don't know. I can only guess it has to do with my plunge in the Lifestream."

Rising up to walk over to Vincent, Nanaki sat at his feet and gazed up at him, scrutinizing his new features. "When did they appear?"

Vincent shrugged slightly, glancing over at Cloud. The spiky-haired youth scratched his head slightly. "After he changed back from Chaos."

"Whoa, whoa, wait a second! _Chaos_ got out?!" Tifa gripped the countertop tightly.

Raising a calming hand, Cloud nodded. "Chaos forced a transformation. He was the one that knocked out Yuffie, but Death Gigas and I managed to force him to retreat before Death Gigas died. When Vincent came back, he looked like that."

"I see." Fiery tail swishing from side to side, Nanaki tilted his head thoughtfully. "Perhaps it is happening when his demons take over him. He did have different eyes when he changed back from the Galian Beast."

_That makes sense,_ Vincent mused, remembering their shocked expressions as they looked into his eyes.

"So right now we have not just one bad situation, but two. On one hand we need to keep Chaos from forcing his way out to find his way to a pool of the Lifestream... On the other hand, we need to make sure neither of the demons force their way out or Vincent's going to retain more features... But we can't babysit Vincent all his life and I don't think we can stop the transformations... If this keeps happening, Vincent's going to cease being human at all." Folding his arms, he caught Vincent's mouth opening out of the corner of his eye and immediately pointed a finger to him. "And don't even start on the whole 'my relation to humankind is weak at best' thing." Looking slightly affronted, Vincent closed his mouth and tucked his face beneath the high collar of his cloak, glaring with slitted pupils over the rim. His glare switched from Cloud to Yuffie as she didn't completely manage to hide the chortle that escaped her lips.

"So...?" Cid thumped the butt-end of his spear on the floor, cigarette dangling out of the corner of his mouth. "What the fuck are we going to do about it? How can we stop it?"

Cloud shrugged and looked at the sulking Vincent. "Any ideas?"

"A couple."

Cloud's eyebrows lifted upward as he looked at him expectantly. "Well?"

Shrugging, Vincent turned to head for the door. "I'm going to Nibelheim to see what I can find from Hojo's notes."

Quickly moving to block his way, Cloud glared at Vincent. "You can't go alone. You need people around to stop Chaos if he should force his way out again!"

"I'll go with him." Nanaki rose to his paws and followed, knowing why Vincent wanted to be alone in this. "I've been an experiment of Hojo's too. As have you, Cloud." Turning his amber eye to look up at Vincent, he purred softly. "We can understand best what he's done to you and help formulate a plan of action."

Frowning, Vincent relented with a slight nod. As Cloud stepped away from the door, Vincent paused to look back at Cid. "Mind giving us a lift in the Highwind?"

Standing up and grinning widely, Cid adjusted his goggles. "Thought you'd never ask, Beastboy."

Even Nanaki flinched at the heat of the glare Vincent gave Cid for that particular comment.

* * *

A/N: Working two jobs seven days a week sucks. Sorry - my muse has been dead from exhaustion for a while. Hope you like! 


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